September 28, 2010

Head Start: Undercover Testing Finds Fraud and Abuse at Selected Head Start Centers

A federal investigation substantiated allegations that two non-profit Head Start grantees, one in Texas and one in the Midwest, fraudulently inflated attendance figures during the last half of 2009. Average attendance at the Texas centers ranged from 79% to 85% of reported enrollment during the last half of 2009. Average attendance at the Midwest centers, a Migrant and Seasonal Head Start grantee, ranged from 22% to 69% of reported enrollment during the last half of 2009. The allegations, received through a federal fraud hotline, had been investigated by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). On September 14, 2010, GAO informed the federal Office of Head Start and the federal Department of Health and Human Services of the findings of the investigation.